Breaking into the construction management field-and industry dominated by large national companies –is no easy task. Yet in only a few short years, The McCloud Group has made a name for itself in this highly competitive industry.Based in Hoboken, N.J., the firm was started and is owned by CEO Rob McCloud.

The firm serves both the public and private sector in New Jersey and New York, and it has plans to expand in to the Philadelphia area.The 41-year-old McCloud has been in the construction industry for more than 22 years in every level of the business.He worked previously for several of the largest construction management firms in the United States, including O’Brien-Krietzberg and Skanska USA.His expertise ranges from working on the construction site in the field, as well as management and marketing in the private and commercial sector.

The McCloud Group works on new construction, remodeling and renovating hotels, pharmaceutical corporations, schools and financial institutions.“You have to have experience in the field and in marketing to reach this level in this industry,” said McCloud.

One of the few African Americans at this level of the industry, McCloud feels he has been very fortunate in his career.“We are a specialty company,” he said. “We have good exposure and are confident in our job requirements.” He said this is a business where you need to learn quickly and expect changes. Rob explained although the Group is a minority-owned business, he did not start out with that in mind.

“There is this perception of minority companies are not necessarily prime – or leaders” he explained. “We support our clients in all phases of the job to meet and exceed their expectations and we consider our client’s projects our projects,” he added.

The McCloud Group provides consulting services designed to save money, time and high quality service. Pre-construction services offer planning, scheduling, budgeting, design and bidding. “Our goal is to project positive planning and solid management,” he said, and added that the construction service is customized to every client to achieve maximum results.

The average project the firm contracts for ranges from $10 million to $20 million. The majority of his contracts are non-Abbott school districts, including South River and Lincoln Park.These school jobs consist of renovations, additions and new construction. The projects entailed converting classrooms, roof replacement and specialty projects at several elementary schools. The firm also handled interior renovations for Wachovia Financial and current projects include Society Hill townhouses at Route 440 in Jersey City at a market rate of $500,000, as well as a juvenile detention center in Ocean County.

“These are some exciting times in the construction management industry,” McCloud said, “and we look forward to future projects.”